On the sea at night, the flames flickered and the shadows of the ships were heavy, as if a large and powerful fleet was coming. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info But the British Navy is obviously exhausted, could it be that the British main fleet, which sank to the bottom of the sea, has been summoned back to the world?

Such a bizarre idea existed only in the imagination of a few, and the German officers who commanded the battle on the Moltke had learned the truth from the warning messages of the reconnaissance planes: this was a British fleet of old battleships, and the only one in the battle lineup was the product of the dreadnought era, and it was still a thin-skinned and fragile cargo. As long as they are not entangled in this British battle cruiser or the fast lightning strike ships in the fleet, "Moltke" and "Rostock" can completely avoid the enemy's attack with their high speed, and with the three dreadnoughts and accompanying light ships under the direct command of Funk, this group of seemingly powerful enemies is not to be feared!

Before several slow-moving British dreadnoughts approached the danger range, the two-ship formation commanded by Rear Admiral Maas dropped the bait that had been beaten to the point of being unable to take care of itself, and decisively turned to the northwest.

If they do not change course, Moltke and Rostock will pass over the southern waters of Mykines.

The British, of course, did not want to see a big fish that was easily caught and run away, and the "Australia", which was not much different from the "Moltke" on paper, pursued at full speed with two light cruisers, three destroyers, and three small mine-strike ships. In this short sea race, the "Australia" was desperately unable to catch up with the opponent at full power, and the role of the overloaded turbines was only to maintain the existing distance and not be pulled down, and the burden of intercepting the two German battleships fell on the six mine-struck ships.

Of the six British mine-strike ships, three were destroyers and three were small mine-strike ships. The former is one of the few first-generation tribal classes in the British Navy today, and they are short-range, fast-paced sprinters, and although they are only equipped with two 21-inch torpedo tubes, they are still very sharp killers at sea in the early 20th century. The tonnage of the latter is only half or one-third of that of destroyers, lacks long-distance navigation combat capabilities, and most of them are only equipped with one naval gun and one or two machine guns.

Although the British Navy has regarded destroyers as the main ship type of the light fleet since the nineties of the 19th century, and by the outbreak of the war, it had successively built more than 200 destroyers of various types, far exceeding the scale of any other naval country, and also built a large number of light/ultra-light high-speed torpedo boats in service, but the British did not throw the small mine-strike ship into the dustbin of history because of the shortage of funds or the problem of preparing for war. By 1914, the British Navy had more than 100 small mine-strike ships in service, nearly half of which were deployed in overseas detachments and colonial ports, dutifully guarding the world hegemony of the Kingdom of Britain.

With the help of the bright moonlight, the watchmen on the German battleship unsurprisingly spotted six British lightning strike ships chasing after them. The "Rostock" took the initiative to take the rear, only to see the sleek and nimble German light cruiser make a sharp turn to the right, revealing its slender side to the pursuer's sight - the 150-mm twin main guns on the fore and aft decks were simultaneously angled. As soon as the turn was completed, several secondary guns on the side fired flares one after another, and the blazing light illuminated several of the British ships clearly.

Taking advantage of this fleeting good line of sight, the gunners of the "Rostock" accurately determined the distance to the target, and the ensuing pouring of main gun fire tightly enveloped the British destroyer rushing ahead. Stimulated by nervous and exuberant emotions, the German gunners fired a burst rate of fire of seven to eight rounds per minute, and the twin 150 mm naval guns were as efficient as the Enfield rifles in the hands of the British infantry!

In less than two minutes, the British destroyer, which was covered in artillery fire, was shot and stalled, and reluctantly withdrew from the pursuit.

The heavy shooting gave a hearty sensory stimulation, but the "Rostock" was not in love with war. Successfully defeating an enemy ship, it quickly turned left, and the two Shuoxiao-Parsons steam turbines produced by Shuoxiao Shipyard in the form of purchase license instantly broke through the rated maximum and entered a brief state of overload output, and the strong power drove the 5,000-ton light cruiser all the way at extreme speed.

Throughout history, good teamwork may not have been the nature of the Germanic people, but a character that has been gradually forged since the time of Frederick, and is a derivative wealth of discipline and obedience. The "Rostock" dragged on to clear the wreck, and the "Moltke", which sailed ahead, did not only care about retreating on its own. Under the command of Rear Admiral Maas and the skilful control of the entire crew, the battlecruiser, which had suffered minor damage in the Battle of the Faroe Islands, turned 40 degrees to the right, and the bow gun gained an angle to bombard the British mine-struck ship. The ship's large-caliber secondary guns immediately fired flares, and the triple 11-inch main guns were ready for salvo fire with a slight adjustment.

In an instant, the flares shone brightly over the enemy ships, and at the same time reflected the gray silhouette of the "Rostock". The rear main guns of the "Moltke" immediately opened fire, and the two intact triple main guns in the front waited quietly until the "Rostock" completely staggered its position, and then it let out a thunderous and majestic roar.

In the face of the tacit understanding of the two German warships alternately covering, the British lightning-stricken ships that were only concerned with the pursuit were in great pain, especially the light-and-narrow light-carrying light-fleshed light-hearted light-shelled ships, not to mention that the main guns fired by the German ships would be shattered by a single shot, and the wild waves raised by the high-explosive bombs alone made them shake into leaves in the wind, and what made the officers and men of the British ships even more frightened was that the German battle cruisers actually fired terrifying howitzers with their triple main guns, and at a distance of three or four thousand meters, attacking a light ship with a large-caliber howitzer was tantamount to hitting a rabbit with a shotgun. Within minutes, a clearly damaged mine-strike ship withdrew from the battle, followed by another destroyer damaged, leaving only one destroyer and two mine-strikers alive with the British fleet's hope of intercepting their opponents.

The two-ship formation commanded by Rear Admiral Maas was rapidly retreating under mutual cover, and Funk, who had received an urgent telegram from the Theater Command, had already rushed to meet it with the battle fleet. With two large torpedo boats as the advance, the three dreadnoughts turned one after another outside the reef group in the southwest corner of Mykines Island, and the night sky in sight was colored by the rising incandescent flares and sudden orange-red flames, and two warships, one large and one small, could be faintly seen on the sea. Funk then ordered the ship "Regent Louitold" to break the radio silence and send an encrypted telegram to Rear Admiral Maas: I have arrived in front of your ship, please bypass my battle line from the south side, turn around, enter the right flank position, and strike at the British fleet together!

The Moltke received a telegram from Funk at the first time, as did the Theater Command in Tórshavn, as did the Hipper's fleet, which was heading at full speed for the waters south of the Faroe Islands. The content of the telegram was not enough for those outside the battlefield to grasp the details of the battlefield, but it is certain that the countdown to a medium-sized naval battle has entered the table, and it may not be as fierce as the previous naval battles, but no one can underestimate its value at a strategic level. Natsuki realized its importance through his own judgment, and Hipper, a brave, resourceful and ambitious admiral, would he miss such an opportunity to kill all sides and make a name for himself?

As night deepens, the sea southwest of Logg Island comes alive. The British mine-striking warships that gritted their teeth and pursued the Maas formation finally narrowed the distance between the two sides to more than 2,000 meters, and according to the speed difference between the two sides, they could find a chance to kill the target by holding on for about ten minutes. Seeing the two German battleships turning to the left in unison, the officers and men of the British ships thought that the opportunity had arrived in advance, but when they suddenly noticed the heavy murderous aura hidden in the depths of the night, it was too late to turn around and escape. In an instant, the blazing artillery flames swept through the storm, the roar of the heavy artillery poured out the mountains and seas, the powerful artillery fire tilted in, and the rippling sea suddenly boiled!

After only 20 minutes of fighting, the German dreadnought formation rushed into the battlefield with great vigour, which made General Carlthop, who was in command of the battle on the "Africa", very depressed, but the British Navy did not have an efficient and flexible aviation force like its opponents, and submarines alone could only reconnoiter a very limited sea area. In fact, after the unexpected loss of the "Britannia", Carl Thorpe had already given up his intention to engage the German fleet head-on, but with the support of four former dreadnoughts, he suddenly saw the hope of victory, which was like a bear smelling honey, knowing that it might be stung into a pig's head by a bee, but still unable to resist the temptation of deliciousness.

Knowing that the Germans were going to attack the British ships in the waters south of Vogue Island with a battle cruiser and a light cruiser, Calthorpe thought that he only needed to deal with the German battle cruisers first, and then turn his head against the German dreadnoughts. The interval between these two phases can be long or short, and the key is whether the "Australia" and the six dreadnoughts can get close to the target under the cover of night to launch a surprise attack, and if the start of the battle is good enough, even if the German dreadnoughts rush to arrive, the British fleet still has a good chance of being invincible.

Now, the German battle cruisers and dreadnoughts have been united, and their overall combat power is obviously above the British fleet, and there is almost no chance of winning in a hard fight, and Carl Thorpe can't help but sigh with emotion. From Jutland to the Faroe Islands, before the defeat of each naval battle, the British generals inevitably went through a painful process from hope to disappointment, or rather, the cunning opponents fully grasped their inherent mentality, so as to achieve the goal of inviting the king into the urn step by step.

"Pass my order, and the fleet immediately retreats to the south!" Inside the dimly lit command tower, Calthorpe gritted his teeth and had a hideous expression.

It seems strange that the capital ships of the two fleets had not yet exchanged fire, and that the superior side in numbers had turned around and retreated. Although no one on the bridge questioned it, the suspicion in the eyes of the British officers revealed what they were thinking.

General Calthope, on the other hand, held his head high, straightened his chest, and showed a very resolute attitude.

In order to catch up with the German battle cruisers, the six British ex-dreadnoughts had been continuously operating at full capacity, and after the temporary flagship issued the retreat order, the ships had no choice but to turn around, and the battle cruiser "Australia" that rushed ahead had to quickly turn around. In the process of this hasty turn, the two light cruisers following the "Australia" turned out to be full of arms, the "Glassel" was only slightly damaged, but the unlucky "Liverpool" was miserable, the starboard side of the stern was torn open, the sea water poured into the ship's cabin, and within a few minutes it flooded the boiler room, and the battleship, which had lost power and could not get cover from friendly ships, was simply a live target, and the captain had to give the order to abandon the ship.

Upon learning of this, Calthorpe still ordered the "Australia" and "Gladle" to retreat at full speed, leaving only the destroyer "Viking" to come to the rescue. Not to mention that it is impossible for the "Viking" to accommodate the more than 400 crew members of the "Liverpool", when Calthorpe received the order, this first-generation tribal-class destroyer had been damaged by the heavy artillery fire of the German dreadnought, whether he had a chance to survive was still a huge question mark, how could he have the ability to go to the rescue of those troubled brothers?

(End of chapter)